Times and Seasons – Daniel 2

What started out as a great advantage for the prophet Daniel and his friends had suddenly turned into a great peril.

Far from their home in Judah, unlike most of their fellow exiles in Babylon, they were being raised in King Nebuchadnezzar’s luxurious palace.  They were treated with favoritism and being given every avenue of training to help shape and form their young minds into future leaders of quality in their new home.

The problem was that a dream from the Lord greatly troubled the king, and robbed all sleep from him.  He now demanded that his cadre of spiritual advisors get in touch with their gods to immediately let him know the meaning of the dream.  And in order to prove the veracity of their consultations, he demanded that they not only tell him the dream’s meaning, but also the undisclosed dream, itself. The king’s advisors strongly objected to this great demand.

¹⁰ The Chaldeans answered the king and said, “There is no person on earth who could declare the matter to the king, because no great king or ruler has ever asked anything like this of any soothsayer priest, sorcerer, or Chaldean. ¹¹ Moreover, the thing which the king demands is difficult, and there is no one else who could declare it to the king except gods, whose dwelling place is not with mortal flesh.”

¹² Because of this, the king became angry and extremely furious, and he gave orders to kill all the wise men of Babylon. ¹³ So the decree was issued that the wise men be killed; and they looked for Daniel and his friends, to kill them.  Daniel 2:10-14 (NASB)

Though Daniel and his friends had not yet officially entered the king’s service, nor had any idea what was going on, these young men suddenly found themselves under a sentence of death, one to be carried out immediately.

¹⁴ Then Daniel replied with discretion and discernment to Arioch, the captain of the king’s bodyguard, who had gone out to kill the wise men of Babylon; ¹⁵ he said to Arioch, the king’s officer, “For what reason is the decree from the king so harsh?” Then Arioch informed Daniel of the matter. ¹⁶ So Daniel went in and requested of the king that he would give him a grace period, so that he might declare the interpretation to the king.  Daniel 2:14-16 (NASB)

Daniel apparently had a high enough standing among the trainees that he could personally approach the king to ask for more time to get the needed interpretation.  His favorable impression, favor from God, and credibility convinced the king to allow a little more time before the fatal punishment order was carried out. 

Having succeeded in getting a little more time, Daniel knew what to do next: turn to the Lord in prayer and supplication, and enlist his equally endangered friends to do the same.  It is safe to assume that their prayer time was desperate, intense, heartfelt, and sincere. 

¹⁷ Then Daniel went to his house and informed his friends, Hananiah, Mishael and Azariah, about the matter, ¹⁸ so that they might request compassion from the God of heaven concerning this secret, so that Daniel and his friends would not be killed with the rest of the wise men of Babylon.  Daniel 2:17-18 (NASB)

The Lord answered the prayers of Daniel and his friends in their time of great need.  He has promised us, as well, that He will never leave us nor forsake us, no matter the situation. Daniel was then able to present both the dream and its meaning to King Nebuchadnezzar, saving the lives of all the spiritual advisors. Having been given this information from God, Daniel made it a priority to thank the Lord and to praise Him for His goodness.

¹⁹ Then the secret was revealed to Daniel in a night vision. Then Daniel blessed the God of heaven; ²⁰ Daniel said,

“May the name of God be blessed forever and ever,
For wisdom and power belong to Him.
²¹ It is He who changes the times and the periods;
He removes kings and appoints kings;
He gives wisdom to wise men,
And knowledge to people of understanding.
²² It is He who reveals the profound and hidden things;
He knows what is in the darkness,
And the light dwells with Him.
²³ To You, God of my fathers, I give thanks and praise,
For You have given me wisdom and power;
Even now You have made known to me what we requested of You,
For You have made known to us the king’s matter.”  Daniel 2:19-23 (NASB)

The Lord is powerful enough to impact the times and seasons of humanity, and to appoint kings and nations of great world empires. But He also cares enough about each one of us to help guide us through our most difficult seasons.  As we seek to do what is right, to love mercy, and to walk humbly with our God, He will do His part, and will never let us down in our trials.

The troubles we are facing today will eventually be removed by His loving hand, in His good timing.  New problems may come along, but He will heal and deliver us from those, as well, resolving each as they come.  One day, we look up to suddenly realize that the problem is longer weighing us down.  God is good, and will lift all of them away, even if we do not realize He is doing it.

No matter what has come against us, Daniel’s trials remind us to always call upon the name of the Lord and to never lose hope.  God knows what lies out in the darkness, but a much greater Light dwells within Him, to preserve and protect us, no matter the time or the season.

Reflection

What prayer do you need the Lord to answer today? May He do so!

Lord, we offer our troubles and challenges to You today, and ask You to lift them away.  Our times and seasons are in Your hand.  Thank You for bringing us safely through our many trials and tribulations – we recognize and thank You for always doing so.  We praise You for your goodness and love for us.  We lift our prayer in Jesus’ name, Amen.

Have a blessed and beautiful day in the Lord today, as we recall a vital verse from John Newton’s 1772 hymn, Amazing Grace:

Through many dangers, toils and snares
I have already come,
‘Tis grace has brought me safe thus far
And grace will lead me home.